Obituaries

Bernard J. Ficarra, 91, a retired surgeon who wrote books and articles on physiology and jurisprudence, died of fibrosis of the lungs Sept. 15 at his home in Potomac.

Dr. Ficarra was born in Brooklyn and graduated from St. Francis College in 1935. He received his medical degree from the Georgetown University College of Medicine in 1939. At King's County Hospital Center, the teaching hospital of the State University of New York Health Center at Brooklyn, he was a surgical intern, a resident in pathology, an assistant resident in trauma surgery, an assistant resident in general surgery and chief resident surgeon.

He was a fellow in surgery at the Lahey Clinic in Boston in 1942 and might have been the last surviving first assistant of Dr. Frank H. Lahey, who attended President Franklin Roosevelt.

For the next 45 years, Dr. Ficarra practiced surgery in New York and in Oyster Bay, N.Y., on Long Island, and for a time was physician to the Metropolitan Opera House. A few years before retiring, he was recognized for his original research on phlebitis by the American College of Angiology.

He moved to Potomac in 1985 and was a consultant to lawyers and physicians. The author of more than 250 scientific articles, as well as editorials, reviews and numerous books, he addressed such topics as disability evaluation, jurisprudence, medical ethics and bioethics. He also was the author of "Virtue Lost, Virtue Found" (2003), "Politics and Politicians" (2004) and "Images of Love" (2005).

Dr. Ficarra was a member of the New York Academy of Sciences and was president of the Catholic Academy of Sciences. He was invested in the Order of St. Gregory the Great in 1948, the Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem in 1952 and the Order of Malta in 1956. He also was appointed the Founder of the Middle Atlantic Lieutenancy of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem in 1993. In 2003, he was awarded the Golden Palm of Jerusalem for 51 years of service to the Holy Land.

Survivors include his wife of 39 years, Jean Alice Ficarra of Potomac; and a son, Bernard Thaddeus Ficarra of North Bethesda.

Warren F. Perry Jr.

Cartographer

Warren F. Perry Jr., 81, a former Gaithersburg resident and retired cartographer with the Defense Mapping Agency, died of kidney failure Sept. 5 at his home in Durham, N.C., where he had lived for 17 years.

Mr. Perry was born in Washington and raised in Silver Spring, where he attended Montgomery Blair High School. He was a standout high school baseball pitcher, good enough to receive a tryout with the Washington Senators.

In 1943, he entered the Army and served with the Corps of Engineers in the South Pacific during World War II.

After the war, he returned to Washington, where he got a job installing blinds for an interior decorating business. In 1951, he joined the Army Map Service, which later became the Defense Mapping Agency. He retired in 1979.

Mr. Perry was a co-founder of First Baptist Church of Gaithersburg and was the first person baptized in the congregation.

He sang in the church choir and served as the greeter for the Sunday morning service.

His wife, Inez Perry, died in 2000 after 56 years of marriage.

Survivors include two children, William Perry of Fairfax and Mildred Perry of Durham; a sister; a brother; and two grandchildren.

Michael Franklin O'Brien

Computer Specialist

Michael Franklin O'Brien, 56, a computer specialist with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, died of pancreatic cancer Sept. 8 at his home in Fairfax.

Mr. O'Brien was born in Farmville, a tobacco town in south-central Virginia. He grew up in nearby Victoria, Va., and graduated from Virginia Tech in 1971.

He settled in Oakton, served in the Army Reserve for eight years and began a long career with the Geico insurance company in Chevy Chase, working in auto and homeowner claims. He also received data processing training at Geico.

He left the insurance company to join the Labor Department in 1992. He continued to work full time until five weeks before his death.

Mr. O'Brien, an avid outdoorsman, volunteered with the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts from 1986 to 2003. He served as an instructor at summer camps and accompanied troops on camping, hiking, rock climbing , canoeing and rafting outings.

Survivors include his wife of 27 years, Karen Elaine O'Brien of Fairfax; two sons, Scott Christopher O'Brien of Chapel Hill, N.C., and Kevin Michael O'Brien of Fairfax; his mother, Evelyn O'Brien of Victoria; two sisters; and a brother.

Thelma Jean Moultrie

Government Management Analyst

Thelma Jean Moultrie, 80, a former management analyst with the Navy Department and the U.S. Customs Service, died Aug.15 at the Inova Healthplex Center in Alexandria. She had a pulmonary embolism and ovarian cancer. She lived in Alexandria.

Mrs. Moultrie was born in Miami and grew up there and in Greenwood, Ind.

After graduating from high school, she joined the WAVES and served in clerical positions from 1945 to 1949.

In the early 1970s, she worked as a civilian at the Bureau of Navy Personnel in Arlington. She then worked for the Customs Service from 1988 until retiring in 1994.

In retirement, she spent her time at Inova Mount Vernon Hospital as a volunteer and a blood-bank clerical aide.

She was an active member of Calvary United Methodist Church in Arlington; a member of the United Methodist Women; and past chairwoman of the Betty Fairbanks Circle Women's Society.

Her marriage to William George Moultrie ended in divorce.

Survivors include four children, William Michael Moultrie of Englewood, Fla., Bradley Kevin Moultrie of Fairfax, Dennis Lindley Moultrie of Alexandria and Denice Lynn Moultrie of Bryce Mountain, Va.; and two sisters.

Arla Jeanne Grolig

Retired Receptionist

Arla Jeanne Grolig, 82, who worked 25 years as the receptionist with the AFL-CIO before retiring in 1982, died of complications of diabetes Aug. 26 at the Casey House hospice in Rockville. She had lived in Montgomery County since 1939.

A Washington native, she was a graduate of Wilson High School.

Mrs. Grolig was a member of Christ Episcopal Church in Rockville and volunteered with its Bargain Box Thrift Shop. She was active in the Potomac Homemakers Club, the Mini Makers, and the Lilliput Lovers and Lace, a group of women who love crafting and collecting dollhouse miniatures. She was a resident of Rockville.

Her husband, John James Grolig III, died in 1988.

Survivors include her son, John Grolig of Gaithersburg; two grandsons; and five great-grandchildren.

Richard E. Frederick

Prosecutor

Richard E. Frederick, 69, a former assistant county attorney in Montgomery County, died of cancer Sept. 14 at his home in Tucson.

Mr. Frederick was born in Hackensack, N.J., and graduated from Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School in 1953. He graduated from the University of Maryland in 1957 and received a law degree from the University of Arizona in 1960. He received a master's degree in law from George Washington University in 1974.

He served in the Air Force Judge Advocate General's Corps from 1961 to 1964 in Pennsylvania and Turkey. He served in the Air Force Reserve until 1996, retiring as a colonel.

From 1965 to 1981, Mr. Frederick was an assistant county attorney in Montgomery County. He lived in Rockville and had a private law practice before moving to Tucson in 1984.

He had a general legal practice in Tucson for several years before he was named an Arizona administrative law judge in 1987. He retired in 1995.

Mr. Frederick enjoyed travel and lived for extended periods in Turkey and Australia. Last year, he spent a month touring and teaching in China.

He was a member of the Air Force Association, the Reserve Officers Association, the Military Officers Association, the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity and the Phi Delta Phil legal fraternity. He enjoyed playing golf.

Survivors include his wife of 31 years, Cherry Frederick of Tucson; two daughters, Jennifer Frederick of Tucson and Karen Schenk of Phoenix; two brothers; and three sisters.

Andrew P. Fraver

Truck Driver

Andrew Phillips Fraver, 57, a truck driver with Owen & Sparrow, a construction contractor in Lorton, died Aug. 26 at his home in Alexandria of complications of emphysema.

Mr. Fraver, a lifelong Alexandria resident and a graduate of Groveton High School, had worked for Owen & Sparrow and its predecessor companies since 1973.

His marriages to Rhonda Hendricks and Dena Cox ended in divorce.

Survivors include two children from his first marriage, Jason Fraver of Stafford and Roxanne Fraver of Arlington; two sisters, Jill Horak and Joanne Allen, both of Alexandria; and two grandchildren.